James
Arab men using the term "dear".
This is just some respectful advice for Arab men. A lot of Arab men refer to me as "dear" when I speak to them. I have talked to some people about this, and this is apparently very common among some Arab cultures.
However, to us men in the west, being called "dear" by another man is strange to us. Many western men who often talk to Arab men are accustomed to this, but there are some cultural differences with this word that you should know.
In the west, "dear" is a term that is usually reserved for any of the following situations:
1. Between Husband and Wife
2. Between Boyfriend and Girlfriend
3. From Parents to children
4. From a man to a woman
This is not normally used between two men. The word is somewhat feminine to us, and we don't normally ever call each other this.
I only offer this advice respectfully, and to help with cultural differences; not to be critical.
If the man you are speaking to is a westerner, it is much better to refer to him as "friend" than "dear".
"Brother" is also acceptable, but I think "friend" is best.
It is more acceptable and common to call a western woman dear though.
2013년 3월 13일 오후 10:06
교정 · 7
1
Regarding #4, I would be very careful referring to a woman as "Dear" in a professional setting. It can be taken as condescension and probably isn't worth the risk. Generally, I would reserve it for cases of extreme familiarity (such as 1, 2, 3) and choose a safer form of address.
2013년 3월 14일
When writing a formal letter, "Dear _____" is 100% acceptable as an opening greeting. Yes. It is standard. But I would recommend trying to understand it's use in other contexts such as what I explained in my journal entry.
Also, I actually agree with Stephen. I considered this when writing my entry, but what he says is true. One man calling another man "dear" (other than the when beginning a formal letter such as for business purposes) is almost like a term of courtship.
But If a man calls a woman dear, it is not quite the same, but she may feel like she is being either courted or talked down to like a child, or lesser person. It depends a lot on the situation and specifics of the relationship. But in USA, if a business man called his female peer "dear", then it could cause conflict.
2013년 3월 30일
Hi, but when we write an email or letter, we call every one as Dear Ms./ Mr. in salutation, right?
2013년 3월 30일
Also, "dear friend" is more acceptable than just "dear".
2013년 3월 13일
This is really an interesting thing to know! However, I'm not sure about that Arab men are using the word "dear" between each other. Or, maybe I haven't heard any man using it. :)) As for me, when I logged into this site, I found it a bit strange that someone calls me "dear/dearest". In fact, I thought it wasn't acceptable that someone should use this word with me. But later I have known that it's a friendly word between friends.
2013년 3월 13일
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